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THRILLING NEWS (!!!!) AND A POLENTA CAKE TO CELEBRATE

10.04.12

Where does one begin? What it feels like is that everything in my life has led me to this exact moment, and this exact moment is right where I want to be. Two years ago, nearly to the day (October 7th), I left my job as a massage therapist because I was badly injured from too many years of demanding physical labor. My shoulder was busted. I was totally beat. Exhausted, uninspired and in a lot of pain. I remember, on the day that I stopped working, thinking that I’d have about three weeks off to recuperate, and I naively believed that I could lock down a new career and a revamped blog in that short time. It took a lot longer than three weeks.

It is kind of like the perfect storm, if I can borrow that oft-used term and make it into a damn fine thing. In art school I was hopelessly preoccupied with color and light, but opted not to major in photography because I smugly thought that I knew all that I needed to know about that medium. So I pursued furniture design, which was a terrible fit. (But a wonderful group of folks to work with.) And that brought me back to food, because I wanted to invest my energy in something that felt meaningful and important, and joining my friends and family at the table around food was (and still is) a thing that makes my heart swell. So I started a blog and a project: 52 Dinners, with the aim of documenting one meal per week for a year with friends and family. It was more of an art project, originally. I didn’t think about color and light for a while. I was obsessed with storytelling but didn’t understand how to bring that back to my young blog, because I thought that to write about food, one had to master the nuances of flavor and talk about that in a very literal way. It’s taken a long time to realize that what makes food interesting is not being great at describing flavor but being great at finding the story in it. And it’s taken me a long time to realize that that old preoccupation with color and light can be found just as marvelously in examining the colors of fruits and vegetables in the soft light of an upstairs window. When I began the Color Studies early this year, it finally all came together.

So here we are. I have the great luck (and daunting responsibility) to spend the next year obsessing over my favorite things in life: gorgeous seasonal produce, color, light, photography, narrative. It will undoubtedly be one of the hardest thing that I’ve ever done. But I just feel so damn lucky that I get to do this.

VIBRANT: A Celebration of Color and Food, will bring together my passion for the season’s best produce and my deep love of color through a collection of dynamic, inspired recipes. It’s slated for a Spring 2014 release. A huge thank you to Sally Ekus of Lisa Ekus Group and Lisa Westmoreland and the entire team at Ten Speed for supporting this project from the beginning.

Stephanie-A book with Ten Speed! about colors and freshness! Ah, you are *so* living the dream. You go, girl! :DReplyCancel

Gilda-This is so inspiring and exciting, Kimberly! Congratulations to you! I am excited to see Vibrant come to fruition.ReplyCancel

Megan Gordon-YAHOO!!! I kept stalking your blog waiting for this announcement :) As you know, so happy for you and so excited for this AMAZING sounding (and unique) book. I hope you did (or are doing) something to celebrate. I suggest champagne! xxReplyCancel

alison-Wow! That is so exciting! You are truly leaving the dream…and it is beautiful. Wishing you all the best in this new adventure. Oh…and that first image…amazing.ReplyCancel

James Meetze-Oh Kimmy, I’m so thrilled to hear this! You deserve it all and, having made many of your recipes, I know it will be both visually stunning and culinarily delicious beyond compare.

Kasey-Yay! Congratulations to you. Wonderful news and excited to finally see it be public! Those cakes are gorgeous, btw…ReplyCancel

Elenore Bendel Zahn-Woooooha – Life is such a crazy adventure! It’s amazing to think about what happens when we throw ourselves deep in the the sea of our passion. Our deep desire. That´s where the good stuff will open up to us and I am so happy to see that happening to you!

Beth | {local milk}-Congratulations! I relate so much to the draw towards narrative, color, and light… and in sort of blindly setting out on this project and hoping it leads to something without even necessarily knowing what that “something” is at the very beginning. Just feeling as if life has conspired to put you on this path. And it did lead to a very real something for you! Very inspiring, as is your work! Again, congrats!ReplyCancel

Ashley-So incredibly happy for you. I can relate to your story quite a bit, and it seems that for me as well things are finally falling into place. A huge congrats to you!! I can’t wait to have this masterpiece on my bookshelf.ReplyCancel

As for the recipe, you have impeccable timing. I have a gluten-free friend coming to dinner tomorrow and figs in the fridge from my sister’s tree. Perfect!ReplyCancel

Annaliese-This is so unbelievably exciting! It’s sort of amazing what great things come out of some unfortunate events.

I am so happy that you’ve found your way to this project and look forward to reading about the process. And, 10 Speed Press? Amazing!ReplyCancel

Diana -Congratulations!!!! I really enjoy all of your posts and can’t wait to see the new project!ReplyCancel

Marisa-Kimberley, I continue to be so thrilled for you! Also, here’s a funny thing. That plate you’re using up above? The off-white one with the scalloped edges? Those are my dishes. I have a whole set of them (as does my mom and my sister) and they have a fun story. They were originally giveaways in boxes of dishwasher detergent in the 1950s. Next time I see you, I’ll tell you the wacky story of how my mother has been picking them up at thrift stores since 1988.ReplyCancel

Beth-Congratulations! What wonderful news. So many beautiful books have been coming out of Ten Speed Press lately. Thank you also for the recipe. I have black mission figs at home that desperately needed a purpose, and this looks just perfect.ReplyCancel

Ashley-I love it!! So very excited for you! You DID it!! Savor this moment and then hurry up and get started because I NEED your book in my hands.ReplyCancel

Kathryne-Thrilling news indeed, Kimberley! I am so happy for you. I know your future book will become a fixture on my coffee table and a source of much inspiration. Yay for you!ReplyCancel

Stacy-Congratulations!!! I am SO pleased for you, Kimberley! The title and the plan sound like a perfect fit — you really do have a niche to fill with your unique and lovely work. Best wishes for these early days of the process. Oh, and those cakes? They look absolutely delicious.ReplyCancel

Elizabeth-I knew it was a matter of time before this FABULOUS news was announced. Congrats, sweet Kimberley. Truly, an honor so well-deserved (and right up your alley!). I, for one, know I cannot wait to buy one of the first copies. You are an inspiration, time and time again.

sara-yessssss!!!!! Oh I just love it all so much, Kimberly. Can’t wait! You’ve got a team rooting for you!ReplyCancel

Ken-Amazing and well-deserved, Kimberly! Have fun and obsess away, it makes for great results! :) Thanks also for pairing this great news with two of my favorite things: polenta cake and figs. Peace, KReplyCancel

Charlotte au chocolat-Yay!!!! Congrats, Kimberley! What wonderful, exciting news!!! Hope you find much joy and pleasure in the process, and I can’t wait to see the finished product! Oh, and I absolutely love the title! xoReplyCancel

tinq-Congrats! Another example of follow your passion and good things happen!!ReplyCancel

Kathryn-I just love the idea of this book; it’s everything that makes you & this blog so special. Congratulations Kimberly; Spring 2014 can’t come soon enough.ReplyCancel

Cara-Congratulations! This is going to be such a fabulous work of art. I can’t wait!ReplyCancel

Anne Zimmerman-This is such great news! Sean and I just walked up to the Pot Hill bench where we saw you months ago, deeply in the sludge of finishing your book proposal. And now you are writing a book! It’s going to be a wild, awesome ride.ReplyCancel

Carly-Wow, that is exciting news! Congratulations! It’s a good reminder that experimenting with different interests can clarify which things are real passions. I can’t wait to see Vibrant come to life. Best wishes from Amsterdam.ReplyCancel

risa -Really, really beautiful. I’m so glad you’re preoccupied light and color . . . what a treat for the rest of us. So looking forward to the book.ReplyCancel

Magda-Congratulations! That’s wonderful news and it goes to show that our first loves are the ones that follow us throughout our lives and sometimes come back to bring us more joy than we’d ever imagined. Your love of photography is so evident here in your blog and I can’t wait for your book.ReplyCancel